Finally, a new major work from Janek Schaefer... and his debut release
on the much-trusted 12k label. Lay-by
Lullaby is a follow-up of sorts to his sound installation Asleep
at the Wheel. Sounds of cars passing by, soporific music
drifting from the radio, Schaefer’s audio assemblage invites us to stop on the
curb and take a nap (tiredness as the wheel kills, folks). A very quiet album
that plays with ideas like kitsch, relaxation, and dreams in sophisticated
ways.

Swiss pianist Jacques Demierre in Tzadik’s “composer series”. Breaking Stone features three very
different works: a violin/guitar duo (I didn’t know he was writing for other
instruments), a triptych for player piano and pianist (whose role consists in
depressing the sustain pedal), and the title track for piano and voice. The
latter, with its 40-minute duration, is the magnum opus on this CD. It consists
in an in-depth exploration of possible relationships between voice and piano.
Demierre barks, whispers and chants, his vocals intersecting with his pianistic
interventions, both resounding together in the body of the piano. This is a
fascinating study, though it gets alienating at times. The violin and guitar
piece focuses on tiny sounds, extended techniques, and harmonics – interesting
sound palette, but I’m not entirely convinced by the piece’s organization.

At first, Cordâme was a string trio, but Montreal bassist Jean-Félix
Mailloux’s band keeps on growing in size. On Rêve éveillé, violin, cello and
doublebass are joined by Guillaume Bourque’s clarinets, Annabelle Renzo’s harp,
Isaiah Ceccarelli’s drumkit, and, most importantly, François Bourassa’s piano.
Recorded live in March 2013, this new album features mostly new compositions
(and the ones that were previously recorded have been rearranged). Mailloux’s
music is growing closer and closer to John Zorn’s jazzier, mystical side: easy
to listen to, hybridized with various world cultures, sensual, and rich from a deep
artistic process. The match between Cordâme and Bourassa (one of Quebec’s
top-rated jazz pianists) borders on perfection. Balm for the soul.[Below: This link will open the
actuellecd.com media player loaded with four tracks from the album.]

Since La Poursuite de
l’excellence in 2011, Vialka has been quiet on record. Yes,
there’s been incessant touring, and that project with Kruzenshtern i Parohod
entitled KiV Orchestra, and... okay, I doubt Eric Boros and Marylise
Frecheville even took one weekend off. And here they are with À
l’abri des regards indiscrets, a completely different
project delivered as a completely different object. First, the project: an
opera for two! 40 minutes, 12 scenes, a libretto sung in French and English
(with bilingual word plays as they switch from one language to the other),
hyper-limited instrumentation (Boros’s baritone guitar, some percussion for
Frecheville – no drum kit). The topic: the romantic duo. The music: often
simple, minimalist even, very different from the off-kilter songs we’re used
to, though the duo’s zaniness is immediately recognizable. This work kinda lose
itself in its own format. After two spins, I commend Vialka for their boldness
and courage, but I doubt that À l’abri des regards indiscrets will find a spot among my favourite Vialka records. However, the
physical object is fabulous: a CD housed in a book, 12x21 cm, folding pages,
highly original design, great photographs, and the whole libretto reproduced in
French, English, and Chinese (!) – they went all the way for this release.[Beside: In addition to the cover artwork,
a picture that gives you an idea of what this object looks like. Below: Stream
the whole album on bandcamp.]